Sleepy Sipping: Can a mocktail help you sleep?

Have you seen the viral ‘Sleepy Girl Mocktail”? A combination of tart cherry juice, magnesium powder and seltzer, the frothy pink concoction is all over social media and guaranteed to put you to sleep. But does it work?

From a Chinese Medicine perspective, cherries are something we often recommend as a medicinal food for insomnia, anxiety and restlessness. Tart cherries in particular have been studied recently for sleeplessness, as they contain both melatonin and tryptophan, sleep-promoting substances. A small study of adults over 50 found that tart cherry juice before bedtime improved both sleep duration and quality.

Magnesium is also having a viral moment, and our practitioners at Energy Matters frequently recommend it to support a variety of conditions. The different forms of magnesium confer different benefits, and can also vary in their side effects. The most common side effect of any magnesium supplementation is loose stools and diarrhea - many folks trying the ‘Sleepy Girl Mocktail’ have discovered this the hard way!

Just on its own, magnesium supplementation isn’t always the most effective treatment for insomnia, and the powders used for the mocktail can be difficult to measure precisely.

If you’re a dedicated ‘Sleepy Girl’ and love your mocktail, it’s probably not harming you, especially if you leave out the magnesium or switch to a capsule that’s more precisely tailored to your needs. Lately I’ve been enjoying a quarter cup or so of tart cherry juice with sparkling water an hour before bed, a tasty alternative to herbal tea during my evening ritual. Let me know if you’ve tried it!

Raising a glass to better sleep!
Kirsten Cowan L.Ac
Clinic Manager